


Little Kicker

by orphan_account



Series: The "Saw You Say It" 'verse [6]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Baby, Child, Deaf, Deaf Culture, Disability, Drabble, Ficlet, Fluff, Gen, Pregnancy, Pregnant, deaf pride, disabled, new mom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-17
Updated: 2015-04-17
Packaged: 2018-03-23 10:30:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3764815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>JJ considers how she'd cope with the possibility of a deaf child.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Little Kicker

JJ sat in the conference room, hands resting across her growing stomach, just watching in silence, completely shut out of the conversation as Spencer's hands flew with alarming speed and Mac reacted with frowns and looks of disbelief before responding with equally quick movements and wide expressions.

 

JJ tried to work out the mechanics of the conversation; her sign name and 'coffee' she was adept at, and she had grasped 'sorry' relatively quickly, but conversation was clearly out of her league as she saw nothing recognisable in the dance of hands and popping noises that escaped Spencer's lips

 

Even now, Spencer's language amazed her. Loud, exciting, colourful and brave - a more beautiful dance she had never seen. But the difficulty of the language stuck with her, conversational slang and regional changes confused her, landing her completely lost at times.

 

Catching her eye, Mac smiled. "Morning, JJ." He said, brightly. At the change, Spencer looked over his shoulder and shot JJ a smile.

 

"Ok?" He asked, aloud.

 

"I'm fine." She smiled, clearly tired.

 

"Kicking?" Spencer asked, getting to his feet. He walked around to her chair and crouched beside her. "I can?" He asked, hovering a hand over swollen belly.

 

"Come here." JJ grinned and grabbed Spencer's proffered wrist. She guided it to the spot on her stomach she knew the baby's feet were resting and waited for a moment before looking at him with an expectant smile.

 

Spencer's smile quickly grew wide. "Wow." His deep voice made JJ smile. "Hurts?" He asked.

 

"Sometimes - I think he's going to be a football star." She signed loosely. "Hey," she exclaimed as Spencer tucked his hair from his face. "Hearing aids?"

 

Spencer shook his head so his hair flew forwards. "Just for work." He spoke as he signed. "For me as much as you. Meeting halfway." He said.

 

JJ looked almost sad at the idea of Spencer's physical change. "You don't have to do that, I know you don't like to wear them. And you have Mac now." She pointed at the man.

 

"I know." Spencer nodded his head. "But it's easier all round." He placed his hands on her belly again. "Little Kicker." He christened the bump. "You should play classical music, I read that it increases intelligence in the unborn child by twenty percent."

 

"What if the baby is deaf?" JJ asked, half serious. Spencer frowned, aware she'd spoken but not at all certain of her words.

 

"Sorry." He apologised. "Again?"

 

"I said, what if Little Kicker is deaf." JJ repeated. Slowly she began to imachine that life herself: her child deaf to the words she whispered and the sounds of her voice as she said I love you and tucked them into bed at night. 

 

"Vibrations are soothing." He said bluntly.

 

JJ looked across to Mac with an expression of caution, "is he insulted?" She asked quietly. Mac shrugged, not presuming to answer for Spencer, but then shook his head.

 

"I don't think so." He said reasonably. "Spencer is deaf in the extreme, immensely proud of his culture. Another for the ranks would probably fill him with excitement!"

 

JJ couldn't work out if Mac was serious or kidding with her, but she ran her mind over with the possibilities of a deaf or disabled child. She wasn't sure, hand on heart, if she could have Mac or Spencer's resilience. She placed her hand on Spencer's head for his attention and, wide eyed like a child, he smiled at her.

 

"Could you get Hotch for me? And round up the troops? I've a case to go over."

  
Spencer got to his feet willingly and left the room, Mac followed closely behind, leaving JJ with her thoughts. She and Will, raising a deaf child?

 

She would do it wrong, she was sure. JJ considered how she would never learn to sign clearly or force her child for surgery to make them hearing. The idea of a child born deaf scared her and she wasn't sure why it did so much - Spencer was a fine example of deafness.

 


End file.
